$100k salary, packing up from Washington
changea dispatch from
san jose
CA
37.34°N
121.89°W
San Jose is Silicon Valley's anchor city, much bigger than San Francisco by population, and culturally underrated because everyone drives through it on the way somewhere else. The Vietnamese food scene (especially in Little Saigon) is one of the best in the country. The weather is impossibly mild, the Santa Cruz Mountains rise to the west, and the tech money funds a genuinely excellent restaurant scene.
the verdict
the monthly cost of moving past Washington
San Jose is the expensive option. The argument has to be entirely about the place, not the price.
a quick ledger.
$3,470/mo
48% more expensive than Washington(vs $2,352/mo)
9.3%
$67/mo more in state tax than Washington
vs 8.5% in Washington
$4,088/mo
$1,185 less than Washington
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$1796k
187% more expensive than Washington
vs $626k in Washington
1.9M
vs 6.3M in Washington
field notes, weather & such.
283
pleasant days a year, in san jose.
Washington barely cracks 177 pleasant ones.
61% fewer events than Washington. The pace eases up.
70/100
20% lower than Washington
vs 87/100 in Washington
Closest outdoor draw: Pinnacles National Park, 69.2 mi.
95/100
3% lower than Washington
vs 98/100 in Washington
29
82% fewer than Washington
vs 160 nonstops in Washington
same energy as san jose, different zip code:
compare san jose with:
